A conventional form of technology for detecting an object in an image is the template matching method, whereby an object is detected by scanning a template image that has characteristics of the object over a target image and successively searching for a match.
The amount of calculation for such matching processing within the template matching method is relatively large. Therefore, one approach adopted in object detection devices that use the template matching method is to make the processing time for matching processing relatively shorter by performing the matching processing with a plurality of processor elements that can operate in parallel.
For example, Patent Literature 1 discloses a parallel-processing object detection device provided with a plurality of processor elements, each having a local memory, and a generation unit that generates a plurality of divided images each having a portion that overlaps with another divided image (hereinafter “overlapping region”) so that each processor element can perform matching processing independently. In this parallel-processing object detection device, the generation unit generates divided images while taking into consideration the processing load for matching processing performed by each processor element. Each processor element transfers, into its own local memory, the divided image on which the processor element is to perform matching processing. All of the processor elements then perform matching processing in parallel.